CORAL SPRINGS, FLA. (WSVN) - The Sawgrass Expressway in Coral Springs turned into a runway when, authorities said, a pilot landed a small plane after experiencing engine failure, slowing down traffic in the area.
Drivers started in disbelief as they watched the single-engine Cessna 172 touch down on the highway, Saturday morning.
“There’s a plane on the [expletive] highway,” a man is heard saying on cellphone video. “There’s a [expletive] airplane — I saw it in the air — that just landed on the [expletive] highway, bro!”
According to the Florida Highway Patrol, the aircraft landed on the southbound lanes near Sample Road, at around 11:40 a.m.
Ricky Dee, who recorded the video, checked in on the man who appeared to be the pilot moments later.
“You OK?” Dee asked the man.
He responded with a quick thumbs up.
Troopers responded to the scene and blocked off lanes until crews could move the plane onto the median, where more drivers caught a glimpse of it.
“Holy [expletive],” a woman is heard saying on another cellphone video.
A large crane was brought in to transfer the Cessna onto a tow truck.
Crews were able to clear the scene by the afternoon.
FHP investigators said there were two men in the plane during the incident, the pilot and a passenger.
No injuries where reported, and there were no crashes as a result of the highway landing.
But it definitely left an impression on many who witnessed the outlandish sight.
“This is [expletive] bananas,” said Dee on his cellphone video.
The Federal Aviation Administration and the National Transportation Safety Board will investigate the emergency landing.
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